The quest for optimal health is a jagged path that needs tolerance and stealth. It requires courage and hard work. It's tough to change everything at once and it's best to approach it one step at a time and celebrate the small wins along the way. It's more manageable to reduce your beer intake daily than to stop it altogether at once.

Get a planner if you must, and jot down all the new habits you will incorporate into your new routine, for example, exercises, more water intake, less screen time, or more sleep. These changes will help you achieve your goal of optimal health.

1CHECK YOUR PROPORTIONS

Ensure your plate is well-balanced and preferably with half of its measure comprising of vegetables, a quarter consisting of lean protein, and the last quarter comprising of cereals. Do not forget to add fresh fruits for optimal health.

A little planning goes a long way to boosting this habit. Take time to buy groceries for the whole week you will be busy. Prepare and package your lunches ready for the hectic mornings. Prepare them during the weekend or the night prior. This stops you from eating junk food like burgers and chips later when you're starving.

2MANAGE YOUR SUGAR AND FAT INTAKE

I know it's a big ask but the rewards are so beautiful. The simple changes and swaps in your diet make the difference between a healthy and an unhealthy body. A high intake of sugary foods and drinks like sodas and cakes heightens your risk of diabetes and cancer. Drink milk or juice instead of beverages. Not more than 10% of your calorie intake should be sugar.

Another thing to watch out for is fat. Choose white meat, fish, and chicken instead of beef. Use olive oil, and choose nuts over those crunchy processed foods you want. The changes are very uneasy in the beginning but you will adapt with time.

3EXERCISES

This is an apparent one. Exercises of any kind burn calories. Exercise builds your muscles, which means that more of your calorie intake will be used for energy instead of being stored as fat. Any kind of daily exercise whether walking, swimming, biking, or going to the gym does the trick. It keeps your brain and body healthy.

4GET ENOUGH SLEEP

"Sleep affects every tissue of your body," says Dr. Michael Twery, a sleep expert at NIH." It affects growth and stress hormones, the immune system, appetite, and blood pressure among others. Insufficient sleep may increase the chances of developing a lot of complications including cardiovascular issues, obesity, etc.

Doctors recommend at least seven to nine hours of sleep daily for adults and more for adolescents and children because they're growing. For optimal health, the number one requirement is a good night's sleep. Your body repairs itself while you sleep. The brain releases proteins and hormones that help restore damaged tissues including muscles. Sleep boosts your capacity to fight illnesses and produces cytokines; proteins that direct immune cells to fight inflammation throughout the body. The more restful you are, the healthy you become.

5HYDRATION

Your body entirely depends on water for survival. Every cell, tissue, and organ relies on water for proper functioning. Water is necessary for optimal health. Professionals advise that adults should take eight glasses of water every day. As much as water is the main lubricant in our systems, other liquids also play a role in lubrication. Tea, milk, juice, etc add to the amount of water intake every day since these fluids consist of water.

Less water means your body's fundamental functions like circulation could not work at their best. It will impede other functions in a system like the kidneys, liver, or brain. They ey will not get enough nutrients required resulting in less efficiency. The absence of water is fatal and causes death in days. Hydrate regularly to keep healthy.

6MANAGE YOUR STRESS LEVELS

Stress is thoughts, feelings even behavior that is consistent and essentially pessimistic. If left unchecked, it will negatively affect your health. Stress often leads people to act out of their normal selves. They may start over-eating and eating junk food or others do not eat at all denying the body nutrients and energy for normal body functioning.

Stress may also lead to mental health challenges like depression, anxiety, or mental health disorders that pose risks to your health. Stress may be a trigger for underlying issues. It may cause high blood pressure, diabetes, or heart disease.

Seek help from professionals to manage stress. Distract yourself with hobbies or duties, busy your schedule, and take your mind away from distressing thoughts. Solve the root cause of the problems to manage stress.

7 HAVE A POSITIVE ATTITUDE

Studies have shown an indisputable connection between a positive attitude and robust health. It has an impact on lowering blood pressure, weight control, and a healthier heart. A positive attitude gives you a good outlook on life. Makes you more hopeful, and enthusiastic and lower stress levels. Anything that boosts your mental health boosts your overall health as the brain is the mastermind behind proper body functioning. A good attitude increases its lifespan and makes you a happy person in general.

Lisa R. Yanek M.P.H and her colleagues from John Hopkins hospital found out that even in people with a history of coronary artery disease, people with a positive attitude have a 13% chance less likely than their counterparts to have a heart attack or other coronary artery events.

A positive attitude helps you to focus on and appreciate the good things in life and around you instead of focusing on the things that you may not change. more